PERSONAL PROFILE
I am an experienced professional football manager, highly qualified coach and have worked across various levels of the game from grassroots and youth level to the Football League and Premier League, managing in all four domestic divisions, and more recently, in continental Europe.
I have a reliable track record of helping to build successful teams, revitalising clubs who have previously struggled, whilst helping to reduce overall squad salary and promoting and recruiting young, talented footballers.
Video courtesy of Goals on Sunday
MANAGEMENT CAREER
CARLISLE UNITED
Manager
STOKE CITY
First-Team Coach
• EFL Trophy 2000
THE FA NATIONAL COACH
U16s-U21s, Coach Educator & Director of Youth Coaches’ Courses
WEST BROMWICH ALBION
Assistant Manager
November 2004 – September 2006
Caretaker Manager
September 2006 – October 2006
NEWCASTLE UNITED
Assistant Manager
October 2006 – February 2008
Caretaker Manager
May 2007 and January 2008
ENGLAND UNDER-21s
Assistant Manager
February 2007 – June 2007
Caretaker Manager
March 2007
SOUTHAMPTON
Manager
LEICESTER CITY
Manager
• Football League 1 champions – 2009
• Football League 1 Manager of the Month award
– August 2008 & September 2008
• Football League Championship Manager of the Month award
– February 2010
HULL CITY
Manager
LEICESTER CITY
Manager
• Football League Championship champions – 2014
• Football League Championship Manager of the Month award
– January 2013, January 2014 and March 2014
• LMA Championship Manager of the Year – 2014
• Premier League Manager of the Month award – April 2015
DERBY COUNTY
Manager
OH LEUVEN
Manager
• 2017/18 season – First Division B
• Opening – finished runners-up
• Closing – finished in third place
• Overall – 47 points from 28 games, with only 5 defeats
WATFORD
Head Coach
• Nominated for Manager of the Month – December 2019 and January 2020
• Best win rate (35%) and best points per game ratio (1.25) of any Watford manager in Premier League history
• Joined with club 6 points adrift of safety, departed with them 3 points clear of relegation
BRISTOL CITY
Manager
• Nominated for Championship Manager of the Month for February 2023
• Significantly reduced the squad budget, enabling the club to be FFP compliant
• Introduced a number of academy products in to the side including Alex Scott, Sam Bell, Tommy Conway, while helping to increase the overall squad value and reduce the average age
• First profitable sales in years: Antoine Semenyo to Bournemouth for £10.5m and Alex Scott to Bournemouth for £25m
• Two comfortable mid-table finishes building a platform for the club to progress
• Once coaching team departed, we left the club in 11th place in the EFL Championship, on course to finish on 64 points for the 2023/24 season, showing further improvement on previous campaigns
• Reached the landmark of 600 games as a manager
QUALIFICATIONS & OTHER ROLES
COACHING
• Coach Educator Certificate (2002)
• UEFA Licence A (2001)
• UEFA Licence B (1999)
EDUCATION
The FA Steering Group – Football Leadership Diversity Code
July 2019 – present
PLAYING STATISTICS
PLAYING CAREER
HEANOR TOWN
August 1980 – November 1981
SHREWSBURY TOWN
November 1981 – October 1987
Appearances 181
Goals 5
SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY
October 1987 – July 1994
Appearances 218 (6)
Goals 20
• Football League Second Division promotion – 1991
• Football League Cup winner – 1991
MIDDLESBROUGH
July 1994 – May 1998
Appearances 138 (1)
Goals 5
• Football League Division One Champions – 1995
• FA Cup runner-up – 1997
• Football League Cup runners-up – 1997 and 1998
• Football League Division One runners-up – 1998
MEDIA
I have considerable experience of working with the media, both in my roles as a player, coach and manager for pre and post-match press duties, handling press conferences and one-to-one interviews for local, regional, national and global media outlets.
In addition to this, I have also worked within paid roles in the media for various organisations, including:
BBC Sport | Sky Sports | BT Sport | BeIN Sport | The Coaches’ Voice
CHARITY WORK
Selected notable charity work:
Party in the Park, Great Ormond Street Hospital
Chairman – 2000
Leicester City staff coast-to-coast charity bike ride for LOROS Hospice
Newcastle to Carlisle – November 2009
LOROS Hospice
Patron – 2009-2010
Leicester City national Three Peaks Challenge for LCFC Foxes Foundation
England, Scotland and Wales – May 2015
The Special Olympics National Games Ambassador
Sheffield – August 2017
Nigel is a wonderful, kind man who I have the upmost time and respect for. From when I first spoke to Nigel and joined Leicester, we clicked and got on very well. He made me feel that I was more than just a player but more like a part of his family. I’m very thankful for the opportunities Nigel has brought for me, and I owe a lot of my success to him.
As a manager, there were four personal qualities I valued highly in others; authenticity, respect, trust and leadership. When I was manager of Sheffield Wednesday, I signed Nigel Pearson from Shrewsbury Town and to my very welcome surprise I discovered he brought all four characteristics to the party. When he moved into coaching and then management, he maintained that integrity and commitment to his beliefs.
Nigel is a mentor of mine and gave me my first opportunity in coaching. He has an extensive knowledge of the game, is a natural leader, with first-class man management skills.
NEWS
Nigel ready for Sky Sports date
Nigel Pearson will be a guest for Sky Sports’ live coverage of the EFL Championship game between Leicester City and West Bromwich Albion this Saturday, on air from midday for a 12.30pm kick-off. Nigel has worked for both clubs, as assistant manager to Bryan Robson at West Brom achieving a great...
Nigel features in Sky Sports double header
Nigel Pearson will be a studio guest on Good Friday for a Sky Sports live EFL Championship double header.Pearson will be on air from 5pm for Blackburn Rovers vs Ipswich Town, followed by coverage of his former club Watford taking on Leeds United.Nigel will be alongside his former captain at...
CONTACT
Emails will be sent to Nigel’s publicity agents, Oporto Sports Management.
Please be aware not all requests can be answered.